Cycle 13 – Item 216

9 (Tue) August 2022

Mul Naeng Myeon

3.0

at Suraeok

-Gungnae, Bundang, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, Republic of Korea-

with W

Suraeok is a Korean restaurant.  Specializes in bulgogi and mul naeng myeon.  Rumor has it that

DID YOU KNOW: Northern-style restaurants often include “ok (house)” in their names, such as Pyongyang Myeonok, Apgujeong Myeonok, Pil-Dong Myeonok, Woo Lae Oak, Piyang Ok, Jangan Myeonok, Buwon Myeonok, Eulji Myeonok, Pyeonglaeok, Pyeonggaok, Daewonok, Nampo Myeonok.  Specifically, “myeonok = noodle house.”

We were in the neighborhood for IZ’s application to KIS.  At last, after 2 years in local Korean school, we’re rematriculating him into the international school system.  For ridiculous reasons that I won’t get into here, he’ll spend a year at KIS as a 5th grader (elementary school) then join SIS in 6th grade (middle school).  While IZ was getting tested and interviewed, W and I drove around looking for somewhere to eat lunch, and came across the restaurant.

Applying the rating rubric used in my Seoul-Searching project (see SSPYSP):

TOPPINGS: Sliced beef shank + white kimchi + pickled radish + Asian pear + sliced scallion.  The kimchi was quite nice, but I’ve never been a fan of pear (on MNM).

BROTH: Derived from hanwoo, good beef flavor.

NOODLES: Nicely al dente.  Mild buckwheat flavor.

CONCLUSION: A respectable representation of modern Pyongyang-style MNM.

(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)

(See also MUL NAENG MYEON)

(See also RESTAURANTS IN KOREA)